Page 93 of Wolf's Chance

“Willow isn’t a shifter.”

“Well aware of that.” We sat in silence for a while, both lost to our thoughts before Cannon ruined it. “Have you been back?”

“No.” I anticipated his next question. “Don’t bother asking.”

I heard his low exhale. “Right.” Cannon looked down the mountain to the village that housed his pack. “You should tell her.”

“She doesn’t need to know.”

He was watching me, and I was pretending he wasn’t. “Doesn’t she? She’s in our world, Caleb. She’s a human walking over pack territory. When she sleeps, she visits packlands. I think if you told her more about…things, she’d understand.”

“You mean if I told her why I have no pack?” My voice was full of bitterness. “She doesn’tneedto know, and she will never need to know. It makes no difference to what she sees or what she paints.”

“You don’t know that.”

Standing, I brushed off the back of my jeans, my toes curling into the grass below my feet. “I know more than you, and I know her.” I didn’t look at the alpha in front of me. “Tell me when the shaman gets here. I want off this damn mountain.” I walked away before he could answer.

A white wolf passed me as I walked towards the bunker. It stopped and looked at me. The intensity of the amber stare would have been unnerving for some.

“He’s higher up the mountain,” I told her. I kept walking, knowing I probably just pissed off the alpha’s mate by not greeting her properly, and no doubt Cannon would say something about it later.

The door to Willow’s room was slightly ajar, and I could hear her moving about the small space as I approached. Shedidn’t hear me. She was oblivious to so much, and I took the opportunity to watch her as she got ready for her morning.

Cannon was right. Ihadtold them she wouldn’t leave the room, and they had doubted me. It had been three days, and she still kept herself contained within the four walls they’d put her in. I appreciated a rule follower—when Cannon said “stay,” she’d stayed—but good grief, she’dstayedfor three days. Why wasn’t she curious?

Or was she scared?

Chewing my inner cheek, I watched her and realized that was more likely. Willow had no idea of what was outside her door, and the fear of the unknown was sometimes worse than the knowledge of the known.

I took in her appearance, checking she looked healthy—well, as healthy as Willow could look. She was wearing jeans and a hoodie, and like me, her feet were bare. Her hair was loose, and while pale, she looked okay.

“You lost your shoes?”

Willow’s scream of surprise made me laugh, causing her to spin to glare at me, her eyes already narrowed in anger. “Caleb! Don’t sneak up on people!”

“I didn’t sneak,” I told her, pushing the door wider. I gestured to her feet. “Where’s your socks?” Willow turned her head away but not before I saw the slight blush on her cheeks. “Ran out of clean clothes?” It was a guess, but her sharp nod made me smile. She was a rule follower, but dear Luna, she was a stubborn woman. “You should have told someone. They’d have washed your clothes.”

That earned me a look. “I don’t need to bother people. It’s bad enough that I’m here invading their space.”

“Dear Goddess,” I muttered, walking into her room and picking up the tote bag she came with. Pulling it open, I ignored Willow’s indignant squawk as I pulled her dirty laundry from the bag.

“Caleb!”

“For fuck’s sake, Willow, it’s just clothing. I’ve seen a lot more.”

Slim hands snatched a fistful of clothes from me. “I’m sure you have, but these aremyclothes.”

“And I’ve seen you nakedoutof those clothes,” I said, yanking them back. “So why don’t you stop being precious and let me get them cleaned.”

Willow stepped back, her face on fire. “You’ve seen me naked?”

The flat look I gave her made her angrier. “You were bedridden. Who the hell do you think did the bathroom breaks? Itoldyou I sponge-bathed you!”

“Naked?” Her voice was a high-pitched squeak.

“No, I washed you fully clothed because that’s helpful.”

“Don’t take that tone with me!”

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